


The best things in life aren't free

by hananocha



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: And sports smh, Awkward hugs and carrying, Fluff, Help I've Fallen And I can't Get Up, I wrote this a while ago so it probably interferes with the canon, M/M, Please notice how I have no idea of sports
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-03
Updated: 2016-10-03
Packaged: 2018-08-19 07:49:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8196622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hananocha/pseuds/hananocha
Summary: “…Can’t,” he mumbled through pouted lips, still not wanting to admit defeat in front of his opponent.
“Sorry, what was that?”
Oh how he hated the mocking tone in the other setter’s voice! But then again, he should’ve known from the start that this whole playing-nice-training wouldn’t end well. There was no way he couldn’t have seen this coming!“I can’t.” Kageyama tried to rise his voice a little without sounding too upset.
“Can’t what?” 
“I can’t get up.” With lips tightly pressed together, Kageyama slowly lifted his gaze._______________________________________________________________________________________________________________Kageyama finally gets Oikawa to teach him the perfect jump serve but there’s no way Oikawa would do things out of sheer benevolence.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a while ago on my tumblr (sternenmaler.tumblr.com) and edited it a bit so I could upload it here too! It's like ¾ sports and ¼ fluff from a person who basically has no idea about sports...

“Please teach me how to control the jump serve!”

After these words came out of his mouth, he knew there was no turning back. And even while he stared at the floor in his awkward bow, he could feel those merciless brown eyes piercing through him. One minute behaving like a brat, the other being dead serious, Kageyama had never really been able to understand Oikawa Tooru, who had gone dead silent now.  And now, it wouldn’t be long until he’d get told off by some goofy gesture anyway. After all, no matter how many times Kageyama had asked his former senpai, he’d never agreed to teach him anything.

It had taken most of his pride to even ask for Oikawa’s help, well knowing that he’d be rejected. But fueled by his teammates’ improvement, he simply couldn’t pass on the option of asking oncemore. Up until now, his determination had never been enough to convince Oikawa and Kageyama knew very well that it took quite a lot of benevolence to even teach an enemy. Benevolence that the other setter probably wouldn’t even show to his own teammates. So surely it would be any second now until he’d get shot down. Just why hadn’t Oikawa said anything yet? Was he laughing at him already?

Kageyama slowly raised his head to check if he wasn’t caught on the other’s phone yet again. This kind of embarrassment was really something he’d pass on, especially since Oikawa might show it to the whole Seijou team. And not to mention that it wouldn’t have been the first time, too. But to his surprise, he was met with Oikawa’s serious side.

“You never give up, do you? Jeez, Tobio-chan, you’re so annoying! If it means you’ll stop pestering me already, we’ll meet here tomorrow at 2.” The seriousness vanished a second later and was replaced with a malicious smirk. “Don’t you dare to be late, Tobio-chan! After all I’m sacrificing my precious weekend to teach someone as annoying as you…”

A playful sigh heaved from his shoulders and Kageyama only caught another glimpse of his former senpai winking until he turned away, leaving the boy completely puzzled about what had just happened. He straightened his back and stared after Oikawa and even as he passed a corner, Kageyama still stared until he could believe what had just happened.

 

The next day, Kageyama stood nervously waiting at their meeting spot. It was the same gym Oikawa used to teach these little kids about volleyball, so Kageyama wondered if he already owned the keys to it. Or had it been difficult to get them? Since there was no way this guy would go out of his way for him, he must’ve had the keys already. And more importantly, why had Oikawa even agreed in the first place? He had rejected him any other time, so why now? There had never been much sympathy between them, only rivalry. So could it be that this was… a trap?

The setter shuddered. Surely there would be some kind of payback for him, and knowing Oikawa, it would be especially humiliating. How stupid of him! After getting over the shock of Oikawa’s answer, he had spent the whole day yesterday celebrating his victory without thinking of any kind of consequences. Maybe it wasn’t too late to run away now. He could always tell him some kind of lame excuse as to why he didn’t make it to the practice. If he ran away now, he’d surely…

“Aren’t you coming in already? You think I have all day training a brat like you?” Oikawa’s slightly annoyed voice caught him mid turn. There was no way he could escape this now, could he?

“S… Sorry.” Pouting, Kageyama turned back around and gingerly stepped into the gym. But when he raised his gaze, he was once again surprised. The field was already prepared with water bottles as enemy substitutes. When Oikawa noticed his confusion, he just declared, “I wanna get this over with fast, you know!” and folded his arms. “Now warm up or we’ll be done here the second you start.”

Kageyama gulped. He really couldn’t imagine Oikawa teaching kids with this attitude, let alone explain volleyball in a gentle way. But without an escape, he might as well take in the lesson before his doom. Quickly dropping his bag, Kageayama went to the other side of his field with Oikawa watching from the sideline.

“Show me how you’d usually do a jump serve.”

The older setter threw a ball at him. Catching it, Kageyama concentrated. It was time to push all the negative thoughts and consequences away and focus only on the ball, on the game. Otherwise he’d get laughed at in a second. Taking a steady breath, he threw the volleyball high in the air, leaped after it and forcefully struck it back down with his hand. The ball went flying over the net and mercilessly smashed a water bottle out of the way. Lucky! But this wasn’t the time to be pleased with himself. He had barely been able to aim the ball in midair. Before analyzing his play further, another ball was thrown at him.

“Alright. Now do it again 10 more times. Try to concentrate properly.”

 

There it was again, that serious aura. Kageyama rarely got a glimpse of it, even back then during practices, Oikawa would rather put on playful smirks instead of showing an honest face… But that meant he didn’t just take this training lightly, so far he could tell. And that was already a big step forward. Surely, with Oikawa’s help, he soon would be able to control his serve perfectly! That was, if everything went smoothly from here on.

He once again tossed the ball into the air and jumped after it. Kageyama repeated this process a few times, until his routine was broken by an angry shout from the sideline.

“Don’t aim at the same spot over and over again! This isn’t how you’ll learn to control it!”

Glancing over at Oikawa, he still couldn’t believe how calm and serious the other had become in such a short time. He must’ve been precisely watching his movements until now, as if his gaze was rather fixed on his form than him as a person. It was almost scary, Kageyama thought. A person changing so quickly.  But - it was gonna help him develop this technique. And now that they’d already begun, there was no way he wouldn’t give his best in this rare opportunity.

Without a word, he picked up the next ball and proceeded with another serve.  He didn’t exactly count but he was sure he’d hit way over ten balls until Oikawa allowed him a short break.

“Well… at least you only missed like one third of your serves. “ There it was again, the cocky attitude. “From now on I’ll be calling out positions for you to toss at, so make sure to follow up.”

Again, Kageyama only nodded without any objections. If this was part of the training, he could do it. Getting ready with the ball, the older setter shouted the instructions at him while he was already in midair. Even though he had expected it, the sudden command slightly threw him off and the ball didn’t even make it over the net. No words were exchanged until Kageyama was ready to serve again. This time, prepared for the sudden calling, he was able to aim the ball in the general direction, but still missed the bottle by far.

“Do it again.”

Kageyama didn’t need to be told twice. His feet lifted off the ground once more to spike the ball into the desired direction. He already knew what was gonna come now. Lots and lots of merciless repetition. He didn’t expect the older setter to go easy on him, anyway.

He lifted the ball into the air, jumped after it, aimed, and smashed it down.  On and on with Oikawa’s voice in the background instructing him. During short breaks where they’d put the bottles back up, Oikawa would tell him how to improve his posture, especially the way of holding his hand when it met with the ball in order to control it better. To Kageyama, it seemed odd but somewhat pleasant to talk to his former senpai without any attitudes put up on both sides. Their short talks couldn’t be compared to a real conversation, but the setter felt that right now, they were on the same level of communication. Of course this was only because Oikawa was focused on volleyball the same as he was, but it was still a surprise. This and that he could feel how he slowly but steadily got a sense for aiming. In his euphoria, he barely noticed the strain he put on his legs by the constant jumping.

 

Being very strict, Oikawa only allowed for very few breaks and constantly switched to different methods while the sun slowly descended behind the gym. Kageyama found it harder and harder to keep up. His feet felt heavier after every jump and he had to pause often to catch his breath. The gym was bathed in a warm glow and only now did he notice their long shadows. Just how much time had they spent practicing?

“Hey now, what’s this? Are you slacking off already?”  Oikawa approached with folded arms. He too had loosened his strict aura by now, but that didn’t keep him from staring down at Kageyama who was still trying to catch his breath.

Worn out like this, Kageyama just shot his former senpai a slightly sour glance before straightening himself again. Like hell he was gonna give up, but what was the point of pushing him even further if his legs felt really wobbly already? In the worst case, he might get injured. But backing down would only make him look weak. And even the faintest hint of that arrogant grin made him dribble the ball with more force before he tossed it up once more.

As soon as his worn-out feet left the ground, he knew something was wrong. Time seemed to slow down, but his hand still couldn’t reach the ball properly anymore.  As his flight reached its highest point, he caught sight of an odd twinkle in Oikawa’s eyes until the slow motion was lifted and he descended to the floor with rapid speed.

 

THUMP.

 

Unable to bear his weight anymore, Kageyama’s legs simply folded underneath him and he landed on the floor with his butt. Seconds after, the volleyball hit the floor as well and bounced a few more times before it came to a halt, leaving the gym in perfect silence.

That hurt! Although he couldn’t even say what was more painful: falling on his butt or the fact that his legs had suddenly given in. Speaking of that, he carefully glanced at his legs, but luckily couldn’t spot any injuries aside from his slightly swollen ankles. That stupid Oikawa! He must’ve noticed that another jump would be too much for him to take! And yet he had made him do it! Kageyama had to seriously wonder if this had been Oikawa’s plan all along. Getting him injured.

Enraged, he turned his head to find the other standing just a few steps away from him. The last signs of what seemed like a last minute put on mask of concern quickly vanished on the other setter’s face and were replaced by a mocking grin.

“DON’T say anything” Kageyama warned him. The training had been going fairly well so the last thing he needed were some cocky words from someone like this guy to ruin it. Especially while he was sitting on the floor, on his butt.

Proceeding to get up, Kageyama soon noticed that his legs didn’t like this idea very much. He strained to at least get on his knees, but then the feeling of balancing weight on his feet again was literally too much to bear. There was no way but to return in his original position and rest some more. Which proved as very difficult as soon as a giggling from behind reached him.

“ _W_ _hat_ _?_ ” He snapped, staring into Oikawa’s somewhat delighted face. There was no way he’d admit that he was unable to move his legs. Not that the other wouldn’t be able to tell already anyways.

Oikawa ran a hand through his hair and stuck his tongue out. “Sorry, seems like my training was a little too hard for you, huh?” His arrogant grin only fuelled Kageyama’s rage.

“You knew that last serve was too much! Why did you make me do it anyway?” In return, the older one’s cool attitude crumbled away. 

“Haa? If you knew you wouldn’t be able to make it, then why did you listen to me!”

He was right, but that didn’t mean that Kageyama was gonna accept this. He silently grumbled an answer at the floor. Like hell would he stare into this annoying face looming down at him any longer.

“Look, if you’re done for today, then why don’t you just go home?”

Another inaudible answer followed by a pout. He should know just how much his legs hurt! And yet he’d still dare to ask in this ridiculous way!  As if he…

 

Oh.

 

Of course. 

 

_Because_ he knew, he would ask like that. Even while he was down, Oikawa would proceed to torment him further. Kageyama knew he had to calm down in order not to further embarrass himself but there was no way he’d give the older one the satisfaction of actually spelling it out!

 

Silence filled the gym except for the noise of Oikawa gathering the stuff they left around the field. Minutes later he heard his bag being dropped next to him and he could feel Oikawa’s stare weighting down on him again, still waiting for an answer. Even though he’d had a moment of rest, his legs didn’t feel any better yet. Kageyama slowly realized that this might become a problem.

“…Can’t,” he mumbled through pouted lips, still not wanting to admit defeat in front of his opponent.

“Sorry, what was that?” Oh how he hated the mocking tone in the other setter’s voice! But then again, he should’ve known from the start that this whole playing-nice-training wouldn’t end well. There was no way he couldn’t have seen this coming!

“I can’t.” Kageyama tried to rise his voice a little without sounding too upset.

“Can’t what?”

There must’ve been the biggest smirk on Oikawa’s face right now. Damn this stupid egoist! He really couldn’t believe it. That surely was a lesson learned. Never again would he ask for anything from this guy. Had this been his intention from the beginning? But other than this final serve, it had been going really well, hadn’t it?

“I can’t get up.” With lips tightly pressed together, Kageyama slowly lifted his gaze. Whatever kind of satisfied grin would greet him, he’d endure it. Somehow. He had to. What a form of payback that was.

The pleased smirk on Oikawa’s face still hit him hard. Just how could a single guy be so full of himself?!

“Then… what should we do about that?” He dragged out his words on purpose, annoying him in every way possible.

Sulking, Kageyama decided he definitely wasn’t going to answer _that_ question. Especially since he still had to work out a fitting solution for himself. If only he could at least get on his feet, then he’d be able to walk it off, surely… It was worth another try. But struggling under Oikawa’s amused gaze was even worse, so he settled back down again soon after. Only now did it strike him that this would turn into an even bigger problem than he’d estimated at first. And apparently he wasn’t the only one who had noticed the gravity of this situation.

An annoyed sigh came from Oikawa.

“Wow, are you serious?” He suddenly sounded a lot more tired than before. There was a pause before Oikawa raised his voice once more, the mocking undertone finding its way through again.

“Tobio-chan really wants me to carry him, huh.”

Kageyama’s eyes went wide when he heard those words. “No way!!” he exclaimed, staring at his former senpai in a shock. His reaction made Oikawa’s smirk return in no time.

“Aw, no need to be shy now, Tobio-chan.” The older crossed the distance between them until he stood in front of Kageyama. Then he added in a thoughtful voice to himself: “I hope you’re not as heavy as you look.”

“Like hell I’m letting you carry me!” The younger blurted out nervously, still horrified by the thought. This kind of humiliation was on a whole different level!

“Look, I promised the guy who owns this place that we’d be out of here by 8. So if it bothers you that much to be carried, you can crawl your way out.”

He crouched down in front of Kageyama. Even though what he said was indeed reasonable, there was still the hint of a grin on his face that pissed himoff! How could he ever agree to such a ridiculous idea!

But to be frank, crawling sounded even worse. There was no way no phone cameras would be involved. At least if Oikawa carried him, he couldn’t use his hands…

His expression darkened. So that was how his life was gonna end. Death by humilation. Kageyama imagined that if it was any other member from Karasuno, it would only be half as embarrassing as having his former senpai do it. Even if it was Hinata. Because he was sure he’d still hear about this ten years from now.

“F..fine”, he admitted at last, “but I won’t let you carry me like a girl!” The words hastily came out of his mouth and he was sure to regret them a second later. At least as Oikawa chuckled.

“You don’t even know how to carry a girl, do you, Tobio-chan…”

 In return he only brought out a lame ‘Shut up’ to silence the older setter’s teasing. Maybe it was because Oikawa himself seemed a bit surprised that it had come to such an odd situation, but when both fell into silence again, the air around them seemed to cool down at last. 

 

“Put your hands around my neck.” Oikawa’s voice cut through the serious air around them once again.

It sounded more like an instruction back in the training than another tease. Kageyama’s strained gaze had softened during the silence and now he only shot a wary glance at the boy before him before obeying. He gingerly lifted his arms and wrapped them around Oikawa’s neck. Even though he’d already felt hot from the training, his face once again burned with heat, only this time from embarrassment. Their faces felt too close for comfort and he quickly averted his eyes. At least he wouldn’t have to stare into this stupid mug for long anymore.

“I’m gonna lift you up now, so make sure you hold on tightly.” Oikawa’s calm and level voice brushed his ear as he leaned in. Just when he thought this couldn’t get any more awkward a shiver made its way down his back.

Oikawa’s hands found the spot behind his knees, and carefully pulled him close before standing up. To stop himself from sliding down again, Kageyama instantly wrapped his legs around the other one as well.

‘You’re really heavy,’ was more to fill the awkward silence than to throw another mean blow at him. Oikawa adjusted his hands once again, which now rested on the back of Kageyama’s thighs.

A little too close to his butt, Kageyama thought, but on top of being in no position to argue, he felt fatigue conquer his body fast. Without paying mind, his head came to rest on the older one’s shoulder.  He registered a faint grunt in protest, but simply felt too tired to shift his position now. To be honest, Kageyama couldn’t remember when someone last carried him in this way – probably when he’d still been a small child – or even hugged someone properly. Now it was an awkward mix of both, and it felt weird but at the same time not as bad as expected.

 

Oikawa finally set in motion when he had a steady grip on his extra weight and it was only to hope for that they wouldn’t encounter anyone they knew.  To avoid glances even further, Kageyama strictly limited his view to the small curls of hair on Oikawa’s neck and the tiny strip of pavement they left behind with every step.

The position wasn’t exactly the most comfortable, but since they were both too embarrassed to speak – even Oikawa, who strangely didn’t seem too averse to the whole idea in the beginning – and the steady rocking from their movement was enough to make Kageyama close his eyes and drift off in a slight slumber.  Luckily, the way to his house was still a couple of minutes long…


End file.
